DOCKET NUMBER:  ARL 12686-K
                                 STATE OF NEW YORK
                     DIVISION OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY RENEWAL
                           OFFICE OF RENT ADMINISTRATION
                                    GERTZ PLAZA
                              92-31 UNION HALL STREET
                              JAMAICA, NEW YORK 11433

     ------------------------------------X 
     IN THE MATTER OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE :  ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
     APPEAL   OF                                DOCKET   NO.:    ARL    12686-K
                                         :  
        MELVIN ZUCKERMAN,                   DRO DOCKET NO.: K 3105528-R
                                            
                           PETITIONER    :  TENANTS: CLARENCE & GERTRUDE
     ------------------------------------X           ROBERTS                  


       ORDER AND OPINION GRANTING PETITION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW IN PART


     The above-named petitioner filed  a  Petition  for  Administrative  Review
     against an order issued on July 23, 1986, by the Rent Administrator of the 
     Columbus   Circle   District   Rent   Office,   concerning   the   housing
     accommodations known as 222 Lenox Road, Apartment No. 3 Brooklyn.

     The tenants, who took occupancy on about October 20, 1978  at  a  rent  of
     $275.00 per month, filed a complaint of overcharge on March 27, 1984.

     The herein appealed  order  of  the  Rent  Administration  established  an
     initial rent $246.64 pursuant to a default procedure based on the  owner's
     failure to submit a complete rental history and  found  total  overcharges
     of $4122.67, including interest, though June 20, 1986.

     The petitioner, among other things, has urged throughout  this  proceeding
     that he  is  a  receiver  appointed  in  a  federal  mortgage  foreclosure
     proceeding as of July 1, 1983 and has no prior records.

     The Commissioner is of the opinion that the petition should be granted  in
     part.

     Section 42A of the former Rent Stabilization Code requires that  an  owner
     retain complete records for each stabilized apartment in effect from  June
     30, 1974 (or the date the apartment became subject to rent  stabilization,
     if later) to date and to produce such records to the DHCR upon demand.

     Section  26-516 of  Rent  Stabilization  Law,  effective  April  1,  1984,
     limited an owner's obligation to provide rent records by providing that an 
     owner may not be required to maintain or produce  rent  records  for  more
     than 4 years prior to the most  recent  registration,  and  concomitantly,
     established a 4 year limitation on the calculation of rent overcharges.

     It has been the DHCR's policy that overcharge complaints  filed  prior  to
     April 1, 1984 are to be processed pursuant to the law or  Code  in  effect
     on March 31, 1984.  (See section 2526.1(a)(4) of the current Rent 







     DOCKET NUMBER:  ARL 12684-K
     Stabilization Code.)  The DHCR has therefore applied Section  42A  of  the
     former Code to  overcharge  complaints  filed  prior  to  April  1,  1984,
     requiring complete rent records in these cases.  In following this policy, 
     the DHCR has sought to be consistent with the legislative  intent  of  the
     Omnibus Housing Act (Chapter 403, Laws of 1983), as implemented by the New 
     York City Conciliation and Appeals Board (CAB), the predecessor agency  to
     the DHCR, to determine rent overcharge complaints filed with the CAB prior 
     to April 1, 1984 by applying the law in effect at the time such complaints 
     were filed so as not to deprive such  tenants  their  right  to  have  the
     lawful stabilized rent determined from the June 30, 1974 base date and  so
     as not to deprive tenants whose overcharge  claims  accrued  more  than  4
     years prior to April 1, 1984 of their right to recover  such  overcharges.
     In such cases, if the owner failed to produce the required  rent  records,
     the lawful stabilized rent would be determined  pursuant  to  the  default
     procedure approved by the Court of Appeals in 61 Jane Street Associates v. 
     CAB, 65 N.Y.2d 898, 493 N.Y.S.2d 455 (1985). 

     However, it has recently been held in the case of J.R.D. Mgt. v.  Eimicke,
     148 A.D.2d 610, 539 N.Y.S.2d 667 (App. Div. 2d  dep't  1989),  motion  for
     leave to reargue or for leave to appeal to the  Court  of  Appeals  denied
     (App. Div. 2d Dep't, N.Y.L.J., June 28, 1989,  p.25,  col.1),  motion  for
     leave to appeal  to  the  Court  of  Appeals  denied  (Court  of  Appeals,
     N.Y.L.J., Nov. 24, 1989, p. 24, col.  4).,  motion  for  leave  to  rargue
     denied (Court of Appeals, N.Y.L.J., Feb. 15, 1990, p. 25, p. 25, col.  1),
     that  the  law  in  effect  at  the  time  of  the  determination  of  the
     administrative complaint rather than the law in effect at the time of  the
     filing of the complaint must be  applied  and  that  the  DHCR  could  not
     require an owner to produce more than 4  years of rent records.

     Since the issuance of the decision in JRD, the Appellate  Division,  First
     Department, in the case of Lavanant v. DHCR, 148 A.D.2d 185, 544  N.Y.S.2d
     332 (App. Div. 1st Dep't 1989), has issued a decision in  direct  conflict
     with the holding in JRD.  The Lavanant court expressly  rejected  the  JRD
     ruling, finding that the DHCR may properly  require  an  owner  to  submit
     complete rent records, rather than records for just four years,  and  that
     such  requirement  is  both  rational  and  supported  by  the   law   and
     legislative history of the Omnibus Housing Act.

     Since in the instant case the subject dwelling  unit  is  located  in  the
     Second Department; the DHCR is constrained to follow the JRD  decision  in
     determining the tenant's overcharge complaint,  limiting  the  requirement
     for rent records to April 1, 1980.

     The instant record does contain a rental history going  back  prior  April
     1, 1980.  The owner cannot,  therefore,  be  held  to  have  defaulted  in
     accord with the JRD ruling.

     Rents and overcharges have been recalculated on  the  chart  attached  and
     made part hereof.

     If the owner has already complied  with  the  Administrator's  order,  the
     tenants in occupancy may pay any arrears resulting herefrom  in  24  equal
     monthly installments.

     THEREFORE, pursuant to the Rent Stabilization Law and Code, it is







     DOCKET NUMBER:  ARL 12684-K
     ORDERED, that this petition be, and the same hereby is,  granted  in  part
     and that the order of the Rent Administration be, and the same hereby  is,
     modified in accord herewith.

     ISSUED:










                                                                   
                                            ELLIOT SANDER
                                          Deputy Commissioner




                                                   
    

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